Early this morning, I posted my review of the new Cryptopsy album, which can be viewed here. I wrote up some interview questions, and shot them over to the fine folks at Clawhammer PR along with the link to it. I was surprised to see a forwarded response in my inbox from them in what is easily the fastest interview response in my entire life. Considering that Flo Mounier took the time to get back to me so fast, I figured I’d return the favor and get these posted as soon as possible…

First of all, how are things going for you and Cryptopsy lately? Given the backlash that erupted after The Unspoken King, have things been a lot better as a whole when the audio streams of this album started hitting the internet?

Flo:
Things are good, very busy with this release in the good sense. The line-up is very much on the same page which hasn’t been the case necessarily in the past. People seem to be digging the few songs that have been available so that’s always a good thing.

I remember the band being very happy with the direction of The Unspoken King, even being mad at fans for not accepting it. Did Cryptopsy originally plan to retain that specific sound much longer than one album?

Flo:
The sound itself has nothing to do with the writing of an album or the musical content. Every band that records wants to be able to have a good sound production where everything that has been played can be heard. This is a lot easier said then done. TUK was written with different influences (on guitar) so in a sense there was an adaptation period at least for me in the writing process. I think musically the album has a lot of interesting things to offer. What really set people off was the fact that there was 5% clean singing on the album. The deathcore thing… i just will never understand that because the people writing this album at the time had no idea what deathcore was, and again if people think that deathcore is based on sound quality then i’m sorry but thats just ridiculous. With this new album just like every album in the past cryptopsy has ever done we wanted a great production, and finally this time around we got extremely close to exactly what we wanted, that’s such a relief as many recording musicians around the world would agree.

Either way, it is great to have the old Cryptopsy back, and this album sounds great. I know the final product was handled by Chris Donaldson, your lead and rhythm guitar, as well as Jef Fortin mastering it. I see also the band had a hand in the production aspect. First of all, what was it like working together to produce the album? Were there any issues that came about while doing so, or any interesting stories?

Flo:
It was a lot of fun and very easy to do. We recorded the drums at my house in 3 days and the rest at Chris’s studio. It’s home made if you wish and i wouldn’t have done it any other way. What took longer was the mixing and mastering because we were really picky on wanting to hear everything clearly and making sure that it remained brutal. There will be some funny parts off course featured on the making of video.

You recorded the drums at his studio, but everyone else at Garage Studio in Montreal. Why the different venues?

Flo:
For convenience sakes very simply

What gear did Crytopsy happen to use in the studio, and is any of it different compared to what the band usually uses live, in rehearsal, or anything along those lines?

Flo:
The same instruments were used in studio that we use live of course, but as far as the technical side of which compressors, pre-amps, etc… were use that would be a question for Chris and unfortunately he is not the one answering this interview. *laughs*

How did it come to be that Jef Fortin was chose to master the album, and are you pleased with the results? Also, was there anything he did that was unique or you just really liked that may have been unexpected?

Flo:
We had a few choices in the mastering process and Jef’s version just pleased our ears more. He made the mix sound wider and heavier, so we went back and forth with mix and master to get exactly what we wanted. He is a great guy and wonderful at what he does

On two songs, the music suddenly shifts to something completely different. I have all your albums but don’t really recall anything like the little Jazz section that appears in “Red-Skinned Scapegoat.” Were these to keep the listener on his/her toes, or perhaps a sign of a more Avant-Garde urge growing that may show up on a future album?

Flo:
We have done Jazz bits in previous albums, maybe not as long, but yes there has been elements of that in the past. We always like to keep the music fresh and interesting and the reason that we started calling Cryptopsy extreme music a very long time ago is that we have always thrown elements of different genres into the melting pot. As far as the elevator music section we just thought it would be funny to thrown in between these two very brutal parts.

Were there any songs, or any ideas in general that the band played around with in the studio, but decided not to record or put onto this album?

Flo:
We always try to finish songs and go into the studio with finals so as to be very prepared. In writing for this release yes there were ideas that didn’t make it into songs. That’s always the case we try things collectively and if it works great, if it doesn’t then we move on to something else.

According to the press release, Cryptopsy is going to be released directly by the band. Why did the group go this way instead of with a label, or is this under a newly founded band record label that isn’t listed on here?

Flo:
Yes we are releasing this through the band itself with the help of Galy records, Revolution Harmony records, different distributors and JVC in Japan. The band remains in full control of everything which is what we have been looking to do for while.

Do you feel that going this route has perhaps helped the band to better promote this release than the labels you have worked with in the past?

Flo:
Well we have decided to go with Clawhammer promotion and Revolution Harmony records and ourselves (both amazingly hard working companies). We want to be in control and in direct contact with our fans. This is very important and at this point in cryptopsy’s career seems like the proper move. I don’t think that i have to explain to anyone how record companies work nowadays. And if i do then i guess some people will never understand how much work is put into creating and recording an album then to simply give it away to a second party.

How about on the funding side of things. Has this been a financially strapping decision for the band, or has it in some way impacted your every day lives outside of the norm?

Flo:
It is financially more difficult but payback is much quicker and the percentage of payback is 8 times better. The old saying that you have to spend money to make money holds true. But we have never been in this for the money, it’s just nice when some bills can get paid.

Is there anything else that you would like to mention before I let you go?

Flo:
Thank you very much for your support, look for Cryptopsy on tour soon.

Well, thank you very much for your time, as a fan I really appreciate you taking some time to get back to me, and the readers. I hope all goes well with the album, and everything else going on with you, as well as the rest of Cryptopsy. Take care!

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Apoch's Metal Review is a website dedicated to bring light to the best releases from the underground to the major players, and educate people why they are good, or what it is that makes them bad. Examined under the critical and unbiased eye of an open minded former Metal Director for WSFX FM, the mission is simple: To weed out the bullshit in Metal today.